Comparison Between Overhead Lines and Underground Cables

Even though electrical energy can be transmitted or distributed using overhead lines and underground cables, selecting one over the other is based on the reasons listed in the table below.

Overhead Lines and Underground Cables

 

S.no	Parameter	Overhead lines	Underground cables
1	Public safety	More dangerous to the public	Less hazardous to the public
2	Initial cost	Less costly	It is ten times the cost of overhead lines
3	Flexibility	More flexible and can be modified easily	Less flexible
4	Faults	The chance of fault occurrence is more	Less chance of fault occurrence
5	Appearance	Nasty since the wiring is visible	Good, since the wiring is not visible
6	Fault location and repair	More accessible to locate the fault and repair it	Difficult to locate the fault and repair it
7	Useful life	Less	More
8	Maintenance cost	Very high	Low
9	Interference with communication circuits	Faces problems due to interference	No interference with the communication circuits
10	Lightning	Liable to hazards from lightning	Not liable to hazards from lightning
11	Submarine crossings	It cannot be used	Can be used
12	Transmission	Used for long-distance transmission	Used for short-distance transmission